In mere days since Elon Musk and X Corp. filed their lawsuit against the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), its initiative known as GARM has seen a temporary suspension now. The organization's website for the initiative is also inaccessible as of the moment, with the initial claims believing it to be a shutdown of its operations because of Musk's lawsuit.
Earlier this week, Elon Musk and X served the WFA and other companies with a lawsuit, alleging them of their 'illegal boycott' on the platform.
Elon Musk's Lawsuit vs. WFA Leads to GARM's Shutdown
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According to Business Insider's report, WFA has announced to its members, one that includes X, that it is "discontinuing" the activities of the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM). This is directly related to Elon Musk's antitrust lawsuit against the organization and other companies that were named as defendants by the X owner.
Despite this, the WFA still believes that it can fight against Musk and X in a court of law once the proceedings take place.
It is known that Musk is calling for a trial by jury against the WFA and other defendants, claiming that this is "war" among those involved, including the social media.
While it does not mean that WFA is permanently closing the doors on GARM, this temporary suspension was decided upon by the organization to fight against Musk's lawsuit. It was revealed by the WFA that GARM is a nonprofit organization that only has limited resources.
Previously, Musk claimed that the WFA, its GARM initiative, and the companies involved in this have colluded in what led to the illegal boycott of X.
Elon Musk and the X Advertising Fiasco
Before 2023 ended, there was a significant protest against Elon Musk and X because of the owner's growing antisemitic posts that have been widespread on the platform, and led to many companies boycotting them. One form of protest was X's partner advertisers suspending or pulling out their ads on the platform including the likes of Apple, Disney, IBM, Lionsgate, Warner Bros. Discovery, and more.
Different organizations have called out Musk and X because of the proliferation of the controversial acclaims by its owner, with Media Matters for America, among many others, denouncing the remarks. The infamous mass exodus of advertisers on X has significantly made a dent in the platform's revenue and growth, with this continuing to remain unresolved.
Last month, Musk announced on X that he is planning to sue the advertisers and organizations against the alleged "illegal boycott" they did, claiming that there is something more to it. Now, Musk's lawsuit claims collusion between the companies and the renowned WFA organization, with its initiative, GARM, temporarily discontinuing its operations, and is unknown when it would return.
